May 16, 2011

 

Vietnamese government assists shrimp farmers to handle losses

 

 

Vietnam's Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MARD) is attempting to assist shrimp farmers in the Mekong Delta to manage their rising crop losses.

 

A conference was held this week to brainstorm on ways to solve the farmers' plight.

 

In 2011, the weather spreading across Vietnam has been exceedingly harsh and guilty of spreading various illnesses that have spurned breeders' attempts to treat them, said MARD Deputy Director Nguyen Van Khoi.

 

Almost 67% of aquaculture farmers' shrimp in Soc Trang Province are suffering from lethal diseases and dying before they can be harvested, authorities said. Similarly, in Bac Lieu Province, shrimp farmers have been in dire straits, according to the media.

 

Director of the provincial Department of Agriculture and Rural Development Luong Ngoc Han said that some 3,000-3,500 ha of tiger shrimps have also perished due to shifts in weather conditions and saltwater intrusion.

 

Last week, authorities communicated that 13,000 ha of tiger shrimp ponds or half of the total farming area in the Delta had been ravaged by disease since the phenomenon began in March.

 

Losses in Soc Trang Province have surpassed the VND1 trillion (US$48.2 million), according to the media.

 

Farmers have been advised by the department to stop their activities until late this month when more rain is anticipated, and to buy shrimp breeds from certified farms in the province instead of neighbouring localities.

 

Tests have been conducted on the diseased shrimp and researchers have discovered signs of necrosis due to bacterial contamination, informed Dr Nguyen Van Hao, director of the Research Institute for Aquaculture No 2. The recommended approach to tackle this condition is maintaining good hygiene in the water ponds to avert the growth of bacteria.

 

Apart from dismal weather conditions and saltwater intrusion, the shrimp may be dying due to early or unseasonal farming. In addition, poor-quality shrimp breeding and inadequate farming methods have also spawned high crop mortalities, according to Deputy Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development Nguyen Thi Xuan.

 

As a partial solution, she proposed that local authorities ought to revoke the licenses for farms raising shrimp of poor quality and closely monitor units to check whether they contain disease.

 

She said that MARD will address relevant authorities and request that they organise a steering committee on seafood disease prevention in the Mekong Delta.